The invention relates to the art of secondary packaging, primarily of food and beverages for consumers, and primarily for the making, distributing, and selling of a substantial number of primary containers in a single complete secondary package to a consumer. Probably the most common number of such primary containers in a secondary package, particularly for beverages, is six. In addition to six packs, consumers are generally aware of other secondary packages such as four packs, eight packs, twelve packs and even twenty four packs. Twenty four packs are often called case packs or cases.
The primary containers can be rectilinear cartons, bottles of myriad shapes, or generally cylindrical cans. The twelve ounce two-piece aluminum necked-in can is probably the most widely used primary container, particularly for beverages.
While secondary packaging costs are very important to producers and distributors, there are a number of other factors which are particularly important to consumers and which can affect their decision to purchase a certain product. Without attempting to be complete or to list those factors in any order of importance, they are such as ease of handling, ease of carrying, ease of storing, ease of primary container removal from the secondary package, safety factors involved in consumer use of the secondary package, and waste, recycling and other environmental factors.
Further as background, secondary packaging as referred to above is a crowded and extensive art, which is represented at any one period of time in the market place by a relatively small number of different kinds of secondary packages.